Monday, February 16, 2015

Favorite Teams that aren't my Teams

Nate’s 9: Favorite Teams that aren’t my Teams


             I don't think life would be very fun if we couldn't cheer for other teams every once in a while.  By no means am I saying that you should cheer for your team's biggest rival, unless you are unaware of who that rival is (whoops).  But there have definitely been some teams that I've really enjoyed throughout the years.  These are the nine that I've enjoyed the most:


            #9 – German Football National Team (DFB) 2006-14. I had a conversation with a friend about eight years ago (during 2006 World Cup) over the topic of the German national team and why they were so successful, even though they really didn’t have that many good players.  My argument was, they are good, they just don’t get any recognition, because the Arsenal’s and Manchester United’s of the world never pay for them.  I’m not sure why.  They have a factory of good players.  In fact, I had made a prediction that they were going to win the 2006 World Cup even though I agreed that France probably had the world’s best team back then, and the Brazilians were probably second.  What I will say is that I didn’t see Italy winning the World Cup, especially after their league fiasco. In any case, it was the year 2000 when I officially fell in love with the German national team, but like most Germans I thought there wasn’t something quite right with the squad.  I don’t know if it was the result of the East meets West generation or what, but when I watched them at the 2000 European Championships in Belgium, I came away rightly disenchanted by them.  They scored 1 goal in 3 games in a group that they were probably supposed to win, and their team looked old and dispassionate.  Guys like Mehmet Scholl, Lothar Matthaus and Thomas Hassler had hit their end, and weren’t going to have much of an impact during the rest of their careers.  I was caught unawares that this performance became the part of one of the most special sides in recent soccer history.  I guess that soon after their lackluster performance, the German FA (DFB as well) decided enough was enough and encouraged clubs to spend money and overhaul the youth system as opposed to the expense of signing foreigners.  While German football took a pretty big hit for a number of years (after Leverkusen appeared in the 2002 Champions League Final it was 8 years before Bayern made it back for the German clubs), they were slowly developing what I now believe is the greatest national team in the world.  They finished 3rd in the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. They were runner up at the 2008 Euro Championships.  Fun and exciting players like Miroslav Klose, Mesut Özil, Marco Reus and Philip Lahm are giving the national team an identity; a counter-attacking side that pressures the ball non-stop for 90 minutes.  And there are ‘factories’ more of good players coming through.

            #8 – Philadelphia Flyers 1996-2000. During my most impressionable years, Minnesota did not have a hockey team.  I didn’t think that was fair considering all the time my friends and I spent playing NHLPA 93 and the like.  I dabbled with the Chicago Blackhawks for a bit, enjoyed some of those Vancouver Canucks teams... (Or just Pavel Bure).  But when this big, bad, bruising hockey team started to develop in the mid 90’s, I had to give them my undivided attention.  In fact, I think it was the day they traded for Paul Coffey.  They already had a pretty decent team.  Especially in defense.  Guys like Eric Desjardins, Chris Therien and Petr Svoboda.  Ron Hextall was still in goal, and he was a BAD-ASS! I don’t think any players messed with him, because they were afraid.  But for me it started up top.  I think my favorite player in the league was John LeClair, and my second favorite player was Eric Lindros.  They had the Osseo graduate Trent Klatt, the Elk River graduate Joel Otto, Rod Brind’Amour etc, etc. I still liked them even when Hextall left, and Vanbiesbrouck came into the fold.  But it was two trades late into this era that set them apart from every other hockey team that I’ve enjoyed watching and cheering for.  The separate trades for Mark Recchi and Keith Primeau. Bring in the 19 year old Simon Gagne into the mix, and I still think this team failed by not bringing home the Stanley Cup trophy.  Still to this day, this is probably the team that was tailor made for everything I enjoy about hockey.  An intense, physical group that just wears down opponents and eventually beats them into submission. 

            #7 – Los Angeles Raiders 1986-88.  Before I wholly embraced the Green Bay Packers as my heart and soul of the NFL, I liked the Raiders. Well, specifically 5 Raiders anyway.  But it was enough to the point that I really only played the first Tecmo Bowl with one team, and I always looked for them on the television when I was a youngster.  They were: Marcus Allen, Tim Brown, Willie Gault, Mike Haynes and Bo Jackson. What upset me was I could never use Tim Brown as a receiver on Tecmo Bowl; he was only available as a return man.  For whatever reason, they only gave the Raiders 1 WR to play with and that was Willie Gault.  This team wasn’t that great in real life and never made the playoffs while I watched them.  My only strong memory that I still have is Bo’s 92 yard run against the Cincinnati Bengals when I was sitting in my living room, going crazy.  He hit the edge, and bam!  The fastest run I’ve still seen to this day.  Bo was one of the greatest.

            #6 – Houston Rockets 1994-96.  I still think it’s the greatest collection of chemistry in NBA history.  While I think that the Chicago Bulls are probably the best team of my generation, you could see a little bit of us versus them in that squad, specifically with Jordan’s camp and Kukoc’s camp.  It didn’t really take away from the team though, those western conference teams were great, and none of them really challenged the Bulls for the title.  This Rockets team probably could have though if the timing was right.  Every player on this team had a distinguished role, and the most impressive part was they never really deviated from those responsibilities. Hakeem Olajuwon sat in the post, and was the leader of the franchise.  You never saw him taking threes, he never brought the ball up court, and he just sat down low and used his array of skills to score baskets.  Robert Horry was their starting power forward and played second fiddle to Hakeem, but played out in the perimeter a little more, which benefited his game and Hakeem’s as well.  Clyde Drexler and Mario Elie shared heavy minutes at the 3 spot and while Drexler’s gifts were on the offensive end, Elie could shore up things defensively.  Vernon Maxwell was an underrated 2, although he started to play himself off the team at this time.  I remember him always being temperamental, but when he was focused he held his own with the best.  Sam Cassell and Kenny Smith shared the point guard duties, and while Smith was more conservative and got the team to play calm during pressure situations, Cassell played more balls to the walls and up-tempo.  It really was one of the better NBA teams that I can remember, and one that never really dealt with any kind of locker room issues, outside of Maxwell’s behavioral concerns.  It’s a shame it never worked out with Charles Barkley joining the squad, but they ran into a team that had a similar style of chemistry plus maybe a pinch of more talent, and the Jazz would appear in back-to-back finals down the road.

#5 – The U 2000-02. While I wasn’t too young to remember the loud, brazen Hurricanes of the early 90’s, I was more a fan of the quiet, unassuming Washington Huskies of that time.  I thought they were doing things the right way, winning and being quiet about it.  When I came back from Europe in 2000, I realized that it shouldn’t matter what the team’s persona was like, because every environment can be a stepping stone toward prominence. These ‘Canes were the first team that I embraced that played with a different style.  And what a team.  I still think it’s probably the greatest collection of talent in NCAA history, at least in the modern era (post 70’s).  Their third string running back was Frank Gore for goodness sakes.  While many could see that Ken Dorsey wasn’t the most talented guy, he knew what it took to win games, and he just put the ball in the hands of his playmakers, of which there were many.  Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee, Gore, Najeh Davenport, Jeremy Shockey, Kellen Winslow Jr, Andre Johnson, Roscoe Parrish, Devin Hester and on and on. I thought they were better defensively.  There’s no doubt in my mind that the secondary is the greatest, during certain times they were able to utilize Ed Reed, Philip Buchanon, Mike Rumph, Sean Taylor, Kelly Jennings and Antrel Rolle.  All first round selections.  For as good as some of these Alabama, LSU and Auburn teams have been recently, none could put up the talent to the NFL that this team did.  I haven’t even touched on the interior, and I shan’t.  I’ll just leave you with a few of these that I remember from over the years... 52-6, 33-7, 61-0, 49-27 @ Tallahassee, 59-0, 65-7 (both against ranked teams), 37-14 (for the title), and 41-16 (at the Swamp).  Just a handful of games against my beloved Nittany Lions, Florida State, Florida, Syracuse, Vick’s Tech, and a couple of other impressive opponents back at the beginning of the century.  Good stuff.  



            #4 – Arsenal 1998-2000. The 1997-98 was the first season I really started to get interested in European football, most likely the result of purchasing the game FIFA and the France World Cup coming up around the corner.  At the time I had no inkling of who to cheer for, or even how the game was played specifically.  Someone at school that was well-versed in soccer told me that if I was going to watch England, the star teams were Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and Newcastle.  The first game I watched was Manchester United vs. Sheffield Wednesday, and I decided that if they won, that would be my team (They did).  However, looking back, I really enjoyed that Arsenal squad, and until I went to Europe to learn that it’s like cheering for the Lakers and the Celtics, was pleased to see Arsenal get positive results.  That first year it seemed like that’s all they did.  I think every time I turned on Fox Sports World, Arsenal won a match.  And why wouldn’t they?  They had a great collection of talent including the best English GK I’ve still seen to this day, David Seaman.  Marc Overmars become my first favorite soccer play, and my e-mail address to this day is still overmars_wu.  This is tough to admit, but while I was in London, I may or may not have purchased a Marc Overmars Arsenal jersey.  Confusing, considering that I could have put 2+2 together and bought a Dutch Overmars jersey instead.  Lesson learned.  Patrick Vieira, Ray Parlour and Emmanuel Petit were still a group of midfielders that I believe to be just as talented as the three that manned United’s midfield: Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and Roy Keane.  It wasn’t until I spent a year in Europe that I realized that Arsenal was not allowed to be my second favorite club, and as if to prove a point, they decided to sell Marc Overmars to Barcelona that same week.  I’ve been United thoroughly ever since, but I still have a bit of a soft spot for that talented Arsenal squad that turned it up at the end of the last century. 



            #3 – Seattle Mariners 1991-96.  While baseball has always been my least favorite of the now ‘5 big sports’, there was a time when I really enjoyed sitting down with my baseball cards and dreaming up of fantasy teams and scheming trades.  My friend Joey and I used to generate lineups of our favorite players and create a score sheet using dice, and seeing which one of our ‘fantasy’ teams would win it all.  While I liked the Twins, and I was pleased when they won the World Series that fall, I really liked the collection of all-star talent that the Mariners had put together.  Jay Buhner, Tino Martinez, Edgar Martinez, Harold Reynolds, Omar Vizquel, Randy Johnson, Ken Sr, and Ken Jr were all a part of this up-and-coming franchise.  1991 was the first season that the club had a winning record in franchise history (thank you baseball-reference).  When we created our teams I would say that 50% of my team came from this group of players, and I always used Randy Johnson as my starting pitcher (Rick Aguilera was my closer).  I know this team never won a World Series, and that it got dismantled rather quickly (probably too soon in my opinion), but while these guys were together the Mariners not only had a chance to get to the Series, but they probably missed the chance to become the dynasty that the Braves and Yankees decided to grow into instead. 



#2 – Real Madrid 2002-03.  This team really should be number one.  For all the great teams that I’ve had the privilege to watch and be entertained by over the years, the collection of individual talent that Madrid put together these two seasons probably hasn’t been replicated since.  They signed one player in 2001 and that was Zinedine Zidane.  He led them to a Champions League title.  They signed one player in 2002 and that was Ronaldo.  The ‘fat’ one.  While he couldn’t quite led them back to the Champions League final, he played and scored a hat trick in what was one of the greatest individual performances in Champions League history (the game at Old Trafford).  The reason that I loved this team so much though is because they were the Porsche and the Ford F-350 together as one.  They had the flair and exciting players in Zidane, Luis Figo, Ronaldo, Raul, Morientes, Roberto Carlos, and Guti. But it was the engine that I truly enjoyed.  The guys like Fernando Hierro, Claude Makelele, Flavio Conceiçáo, Ivan Helguera, Iker Casillas and Michel Salgado.  All of those guys worked hard, and for the good of the team.  In fact, after Perez sold Makelele and had managers stop playing Helguera did the team fall apart and just look like a pretty toy (with Beckham of all people).  Yet, when this line-up was at full strength, and everybody on form, I think they are still one of the best sides ever pieced together in world sports.  (To be fair, this wonderfully put together squad finished 3rd in La Liga, and runners-up in the Copa Del Rey.  But their hearts were only set on getting the one trophy.  And that one they got.)



#1 – Saint Louis Rams 1999-2001.  I’m still obsessed with this group of players. Proof?  I own a Rams beanie hat, I have Marshall Faulk’s, Torry Holt’s, and Isaac Bruce’s Rams jerseys, I still wish that Mike Martz would become the Packers offensive coordinator, and I don’t get sad whenever the Rams beat the Packers.  I still know about 75% of this era’s roster, and the names Dre Bly and Dexter McCleon will never be forgotten.  I just really took to this football team.  I’m not sure why.  I was in Germany when the team started to develop into the offensive powerhouse that it became during their super bowl years. I didn’t even know that Kurt Warner had taken over from Trent Green until I saw that the Rams had the best record in the NFL at a certain point.  My phone conversations with my dad and the Sports Illustrated issues were the only updates I could get while I was over there, because my first host family didn’t have the internet.  Yet, they engulfed my passion for some reason, and they still haven’t let go and here we are some fourteen years later.  While they’re known for their offensive talent, it’s the defense that I thought gave this team their identity that allowed for them to make it to two Super Bowls in three seasons.  They gave up a fair amount of points and yardage, but I think that was a result more of teams trying to keep up, than for the lack of talent or execution that the Rams may have had.  They generated a lot of turnovers, and made plays at crucial points throughout the three seasons.  (Fun statistic:  They led the NFL in rushing defense and sacks during their title season – look it up).  They also of course led the NFL in points scored, passing yards and total yards as well.  Their front four of Grant Wistrom, Kevin Carter, D’Marco Farr and Ray Agnew were very underrated and one of the reasons why they got to the Super Bowl only scoring 11 points in the NFC Championship game.  But, yes, let’s talk about the offense.  We are all very familiar with Warner.  Marshall Faulk was one of the NFL’s best, and hell for all you Big Ten fans, you’re familiar with Illini running back Robert Holcombe.  He was the lead blocker for the great Faulk.  The group of wide receivers is probably one of the deepest in NFL history as Tony Horne was their fifth guy.  Ricky Proehl was their third, and Az-Zahir was the #4.  The offensive line finally came together to forge one of the great ones of the last generation, and Orlando Pace and Adam Timmerman were both all-Pros.  In any sense, I wasn’t mad when this team won the Super Bowl, in fact while sitting in my German family’s living room at about 4 in the morning, I was in awe.  Tennessee put together a nasty performance, and it looked like things were going to go their way until two events.  One, Warner to Bruce.  Two, Mike Jones at the one.  While Tom Brady kept this team from truly being considered one of the greats, it sure was a fun and exciting team to watch.  In reality, it was my favorite one. 



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